While many spend Memorial Day taking off work and simply enjoying the holiday over some good food with friends for a three-day weekend, those who have served in the military often have a different perspective toward the occasion. Sidney Achee, a retired Colonel in the Army who served 30 years – during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War – still feels the loss of fellow comrades and prays for their families. He was a commanding officer, and he will never forget his soldiers who lost their lives in battle. Bob Lawson, also a World War II veteran, remembers what it was like enlisting to serve in the Navy at age 17 and fully realizing the atrocities of war firsthand as a teenager. Typically, he has spent Memorial Day attending various services for veterans and their families at cemeteries. Two years ago, he was part of a small group of WWII veterans from DFW who were honored with a special trip to Washington, D.C., paid for through donations to give local veterans the chance to pay tribute at the World War II Memorial to those who served and made the ultimate sacrifice. Now both Achee and Lawson are residents of The Stayton at Museum Way retirement community and believe everyone should take time to remember those who were lost on the battlefield while serving the nation.
“I developed deep friendships and lasting bonds with those who served with me and hated to lose members of my unit, especially as a commanding officer,” describes Achee. “You feel the heavy responsibility to take care of them, but that’s the nature of war. It’s the difficult part that you have to accept. God just blessed me and kept me safe for some reason.”
Achee, now 92 years old, was studying at Louisiana State University and only about 20 years old when he was called to active duty in 1942. He remembers hearing about the Japanese bombing Pearl Harbor soon after he got to college and knew it would be only a matter of time before he was called to serve. Achee was among those who “cleared the way,” serving in the European Theater as a combat engineer. He was in charge of bridge-building and laying the pipelines for the troops. He then got a regular commission in the infantry and went on to flight school for Army Aviation. That led to his extensive experience with helicopters during the Korean War and Vietnam War. In between, Achee did a three-year exchange duty with the Navy starting in 1959 and worked with the tactical air control squadron in the Navy during that time.
“My father had served in World War I, and my two brothers also served in the military: one was in the Navy and graduated from the Academy in 1948. He retired after about nine years as a Navy Captain. The other was also an engineer officer who put in around 30 years of service,” said Achee. “Serving our country was very understood and supported in my family. You develop a profound love for your country and grow as an individual in many ways.”
Achee later went to work for 10 years for Bell Helicopter, and his family’s military service continues through the generations. One of Achee’s grandsons recently retired from the Marine Corps; another is still a Commander in the Navy; and his granddaughter is a Major in the Army Intelligence in the Reserves.
“Memorial Day itself brings back memories of those who didn’t make it home with me, and I pray for those who’ve passed on,” said Achee. “I’d serve again if asked; we live in a great country despite some of its flaws, and I still believe it’s worth dying for.”
“I didn’t do anything heroic or exciting during my military service,” said Bob Lawson. “But I experienced enough to learn that war is not fun. However, it was something at that time that had to be done. I enlisted in the Navy toward the end of WWII because that’s what everybody was doing. You and your friends were either 18 and already drafted and involved, or if you were 17, you were figuring out what to do because you knew your draft notice was about to come. So I enlisted in order to choose where I could serve.”
Lawson was in basic training at Naval Station Great Lakes in Illinois when he heard war in Europe had ended, but he was shipped to Hawaii where he served as an electronics technician mate (ETM). Lawson worked in the control tower in Honolulu at the Naval Air Station and remembers how the government had taken over control of the international airport there during the war. He was responsible for maintaining the electronic equipment and radar equipment there and at the U.S. Naval Air Station on Johnston Island, just about 1,000 miles south of Hawaii.
“I remember being honorably discharged in 1946; I was just a kid – I couldn’t wait to get home,” said Lawson. “Fortunately, I was never shot at during war. But I enlisted while the war was going on, and I consider it an honor to be counted among the few WWII veterans still living. There aren’t many of us left. I was very grateful to have had the chance to travel with some to see the WWII Memorial in D.C. not long ago, because it is so important to pause and remember those who gave up so much and did what they had to do in service to our country on Memorial Day and on any day.”
“We believe it is important to honor those who went through military training and served our country in any capacity, whether they saw direct combat or not,” said Scott Polzin, The Stayton at Museum Way’s executive director. “Anyone willing to enlist and be part of our Armed Forces deserves to be recognized. We should all take more time to listen to their stories and esteem them and especially the friends they lost, on occasions like Memorial Day.”